Civil War Veterans


(video link)

This clip, recorded in the 1930s, features Confederate Army veterans demonstrating the "rebel yell." It is part of the Library of Congress' collection of rare footage of Civil War veterans committed to film before they passed on. Smithsonian describes some of the films that still exist, and how they give us a glimpse into not only the Civil War era, but also how it was remembered for decades afterward. Link

I always appreciated the quote from Ken Burns' Civil War documentary about the rebel yell. I found this reference to that quote in Wikipedia:

Anecdotes from former Union Soldiers described the yell with reference to "a peculiar corkscrew sensation that went up your spine when you heard it" along with a claim that "if you claim you heard it and weren't scared that means you never heard it."
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wow once again liberal tolerance rares its ever so sophisticated voice of tolerance

when will we see articles on the quaint practices of the urban natives, like "slapp whitey", "wilding" and "fast food riot"

your historical intolerance is astonishing
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OK, you have accused someone of tolerance, tolerance, and intolerance. Which is it? And what are you talking about? This is a link to a Smithsonian article about the few film clips of Civil War veterans that survive in the Library of Congress. This video clip is the only one available with the article. Have you read the linked article? Have we done something wrong?
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I ran into my high school history teacher tonight. He's a 94 year old WWII veteran. Learning history from him was an honor.

I told him about the video and he told me that he had met some veterans in his younger days and heard the yell himself. It's amazing to have someone around who had that kind of life experience.
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It's an important part of our shared historical heritage and should not be forgotten simply because it makes someone uncomfortable. I found it fascinating. Thank you for sharing this Miss Cellania.

Those of us who are educated adults and can see more than one side of a situation appreciate glimpses into history like this.
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Miss C
you DID nothing wrong, my remarks are directed to the posters, instead of marveling at the history of the southern soldier ,for Many southerns this was an INVASION from the north
i salute your even handed report
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I appreciated the link; I'd heard before that there were no surviving recordings of first-generation "rebel yells." I'm about as far left as you can go and think a lot of present-day southerners are deluded by historical revisions regarding the Civil War, but the history belongs to us all.
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Miss C,
You aren't the only one who was (and still is) confused by the comment. If I were king, nobody would be allowed near a keyboard unless they passed second grade and knew how to use punctuation.

Thanks for this post.
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Wow! I am an English and social studies teacher. I shared this with my students. It is amazing to "see" what the men looked like and what the yell sounded like. What an incredible piece of our history.
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Argh, I can't get the clip to load up, and I've been wanting for years to hear what the heck a rebel yell sounds like. (Despite what Billy Idol says, I doubt that someone is yelling "more, more, more.")
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Most video formats are blocked at my work so i was excited when this one appeared to not be blocked. The ad played perfectly. And then the video never loaded. Stupid policy.
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